(San Jose, CA — December 31, 2025) — StandWithUs applauds the United States District Court for the Northern District of California for firmly rejecting an effort to block California Assembly Bill 715 (AB 715) from being implemented. AB 715 is a bill intended to address the dramatic rise of antisemitism in California’s K-12 public schools, which passed with support from StandWithUs and our partners. In response, the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) — a group that has a record of promoting extremism and hate against Jews and Israel —sued California state officials on behalf of objecting teachers and students. On December 31, 2025, the district court denied the ADC’s motion for a preliminary injunction that would have stopped AB 715 from taking effect in 2026.
“The court correctly acknowledged that public school teachers do not have free speech rights in the classroom, because when they deliver lessons to students they are speaking on behalf of the government,” said Carly Gammill, Director of Legal Policy & Litigation at StandWithUs Saidoff Law. “While teachers can speak freely in their private lives, they cannot use K-12 public education as a platform for bigotry against Jews or other groups. School districts and state officials have both a right and a responsibility to protect students from instruction that crosses the line into antisemitism.”
As the court explained, “Teacher Plaintiffs do not have First Amendment rights while teaching, so they cannot bring a claim alleging the infringement of those rights.” It also clarified that “[i]t is squarely in the purview of the government to decide whether and at what grade-level it is appropriate to teach certain content to students; and if the content is taught, whether the viewpoints of various organizations or individuals are presented as facts, opinions, or not at all… [claims about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict] are intensely charged issues that may cause fractures among teachers, students, and parents. It is therefore appropriate that the Government thoughtfully chooses how best, if at all, to address these topics within the pedagogy of our public-schools.”
According to David Smokler, Executive Director of the StandWithUs K-12 Fairness Center, “This court decision is a win for both the Jewish community and public education. As a former teacher and administrator, I know that our education systems rely heavily on public trust. While many educators are careful to avoid promoting misinformation, hate, or extremism, there are some who use the classroom to indoctrinate. The government has every right to prevent them from promoting antisemitic ideas and destroying trust in our schools.”
Going forward, StandWithUs will continue to use all tools at our disposal to fight antisemitism in K-12 public schools across California.
